Poblano. How do I love thee? Let me count the ways. I love thee to the cheese and tortillas and salsa. Oh the hot salsa. Will you marry me hot salsa? I’ll never want another as long as you are with me always. I freaking love, love, love Poblano.

Everything about this picture is right. Fresh tortilla, melty cheese, fresh veggies. All dipped in the most delicious salsa ever made. If only I knew how to make it….

I’ve been a fan of Poblano for a long time. I’m not sure if they came to Wichita before Chipotle, but I used to say “Chipotle is like Poblano.” Unfortunately (for our ears and our self-worth), Chipotle now seems to be more popular in Wichita than Poblano. This saddens me in the same way I’m saddened when KU loses to Northern Iowa in the second round of the NCAA tourney. It’s just not right. But it’s life.

Anyway, my point is, the setup is similar. You order your food just like Chipotle, or Subway or Jimmy John’s and you watch them put it together. Fast food, but no drive-thru. You can order directly off of their menu or customize your order. They’re always really friendly and accommodating to whatever you want to order. Sometimes you’ll get charged if you order extra salsa or guacamole, but in situations where you’re swapping one item for another, they’re very fair on pricing. (For example, if you want to get an extra thing of salsa instead of guacamole or sour cream, they’ll do that for free.)

My sisters and I all want to have illegitimate babies with Poblano. OK, maybe that’s just me. But my sisters all love the food as much as I do. My younger sisters swear the way to go is to get a burrito, with two tortillas. Another sister makes me jealous every time she orders the nachos. I personally tend to either get a bowl with both chicken and fajita peppers and onions (plus rice, hot salsa, cheese, lettuce, pico, NO beans), or i get a quesadilla. There are lots of ways to mix it up. I generally do a combination of chicken, fajita peppers and onions, and pico.

I also am a sucker for their chips. If these chips had a Facebook profile, I’d stalk it incessantly. Almost as much as I’d stalk the hot salsa. Oh, for the love of all things spicy, their hot salsa. One afternoon after going to the farmer’s market, Kristy and I realized we could buy hot salsa by the little container and get a whole jar for as much as the farmer’s market. I have tried to copycat this salsa and can’t seem to get it right. We know they use fresh tomatoes and jalapenos. And there aren’t onions. We can see the black pepper. But I can’t seem to get it right. I finally gave up, and decided it only means I’m supposed to eat Poblano more.

I also like Poblano because it has cheese sauce (for chips, nachos, etc.). I generally mix the cheese and salsa together for more of a cheese dip setup, but all-in-all I’m just pleased they have cheese sauce, and for a reasonable price. They also have guacamole, sour cream and lots of other condiments like black olives, red onions, cilantro, etc. And they have a range of salsas, not just the hot I rave of. You can also get tacos. And I’m sure lots of other stuff I’ve never had because I tend to go there when I’m craving their quesadillas or a burrito bowl.

Depending on the location, they’re open either six or seven days a week. I know the Poblano on Harry between Oliver and Hillside is only open Monday-Saturday. And think the same is true for the one at Central and Ridge. But the location at Kellogg and Greenwich is open seven days a week. This pleases me so, because I have Mexican cravings on Sundays for some reason. Oh, and yes, you read that right. There are THREE locations in Wichita! Booyah!

Overall, everything I’ve had there is delicious. Their meats seem to be better seasoned, and everything tastes as if it’s made fresh. And all of this without the rude service and awful, awful, AWFUL (I mean, seriously, what are they thinking?) music that Chipotle tortures its customers with. My ears bleed. Sorry, Chipotle, gotta keep it real.

Mmmmmm… I don’t know if they look as crunchy in the picture as they are in real life. But, YUM! This is a cheese quesadilla with peppers and onions and pico. The quesadillas normally come with one side of salsa, guacamole and sour cream. I always get a 2nd thing of salsa instead of sour cream.

What the inside of quesadilla perfection looks like.

I’m not sure if their chips are homemade, but they taste better than any store-bought chips I’ve personally ever had.

Here’s a triple threat: cheese sauce, hot sauce, guacamole.

Mmmmmm… Guacamole. And it has tomatoes and onions in it. Winner, winner, taco dinner!

If anyone can tell from this picture what I need to do to make this salsa a reality in my kitchen, call me!